The year has moved to another year, but it is odd that certain aspects stayed the same.
COVID-19 is still threatening the world’s population, Big Tech is still being tested, and Fortnite is still missing on iPhones. Although the fight between Epic Games and Apple seems to be one of the highest dramas of last year, it still does not seem to have a solution in view.
As if to stir up again, Apple and even Google, this time in
the United Kingdom, seemed to have filed an antitrust complaint across the pond.
Naturally, the root cause remains the same. As a result of an update in August that circumvented its purchase mechanism and,
thus, avoided paying its normal 30 percent charge, Apple removed Fortnite from its App Store.
Google was following suit however, as opposed to the iOS, Fortnite
stays directly available at Epic Games or via Galaxy Store Samsung.
Before the ink was dried for the elimination of Fortnite, Epic Games
already had an American lawsuit accusing Apple of monopoly and unfair trade.
It failed, sadly, when the court ruled that Apple had a right to ban Fortnite but also that Apple was prevented from blocking Epic’s Unreal Engine.
A similar complaint has been lodged with the UK antitrust court by the game maker, now
owning his own shop for PC games, who has argued that Apple has exploited his dominant position.
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He stressed that in his complaints in the USA, Australia and the United Kingdom the court is not seeking damages but seeks to lift limits on payments by third parties, which is the reason for which Fortnite was first withdrawn. The same lawsuit against Google was also lodged by Epic Games.
At this point, it is not clear how the United Kingdom will decide and how the U.S. court decision last October will affect it. The actual court struggle between Apple and Epic Games is still to begin
in May, making it a very long and expensive route for both parties.
